Hammons practices with MLB scouts

CHICKASHA – It’s no surprise that after breaking almost every pitching record at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma, senior Nate Hammons would be considered for a professional baseball draft.

After watching Hammons pitch against Oklahoma City University in March, the Kansas City Royals scouts weren’t quite done with him. Hammons recently met two scouts in Edmond for a one-on-one practice.

“It went pretty good,” Hammons said. “They wanted to see me at 88-90 mph, but I was a little below that because we had just played the week before, and I wasn’t fully rested.”

They filmed him throwing about 50 pitches and clocked a pitch at 87 mph, Hammons said.

“They seemed interested,” he said. “They’ve been talking to me on and off.”

But staying true to his humble self, Hammons explained that the draft is like any business, and he just may not be the one hired.

“They have to take the person most suited for the job,” he said. “A 24-year-old senior, I’m at the bottom of the list.”

Hammons isn’t new to dealing with the draft. He was drafted out of high school at Fort Cobb by the Los Angeles Dodgers but lost his ties to the team after signing at the University of Oklahoma.

He said the scouts should call him to let him know if he should expect to go into the draft — but for now, all he can do is wait.

“It’s just a wait and see kind of deal,” he said. “I may hear from them, I may not."